Proving the Dao Trap, Hongjun Appears

"All right, don't worry about your Junior Brother. He is a clever one too. The instant my demonic qi began to erode him, he used the Six Roots Pure Bamboo to seal off his six senses. He was not harmed."

Luohu seemed to sense Randeng's concern and explained, "Since your Karma with our West runs so deep, you must know the wondrous uses of fortune, I presume."

If Luohu claimed to understand fortune better than anyone in the entire Primordial World, no one would dare claim first place.

"Of course. When fortune favors one, heaven and earth look upon them kindly; everything goes smoothly, and all manner of opportunities arrive one after another."

Randeng did not understand why Luohu had suddenly brought this up. Naturally, he knew that Luohu was the founding master of manipulating fortune in the Primordial World. The Dragon-Phoenix Tribulation back then had been stirred up by him from the shadows.

"I have a shortcut to achieving the Origin. Would you like me to teach it to you?"

As Luohu spoke, his aura erupted. The Demonic Dao blended with the Dao resonance of the Great Dao of Destruction, bursting through the underground space as an aura surpassing that of a Great Luo spread out.

In that single instant, the several layers of defenses Randeng had constructed were shattered.

The might of a Sage!

Only such a Luohu matched the image Randeng had of the Demon Ancestor—gazing down upon the world, wild and unrestrained.

Yet these words were exceedingly similar to what he had said to Jieyin and Zhunti. Luohu clearly meant him no good.

But Randeng's expression was incomparably respectful.

"Senior Luohu, though fortune is good, this junior still wishes to focus on comprehending the Great Dao and cultivating his own strength."

If Randeng had wished to take that shortcut, he would already have used the merit from restoring the earth veins to raise his cultivation.

There was something wrong with Hongjun's path of becoming a Sage through merit. Luohu's path of attaining the Origin through fortune was likewise a trap.

Looking back, the effects of the Dragon-Phoenix Tribulation had yet to fade. Looking forward, Di Jun and Tai Yi gathered the fortune of all races, yet in the end, they too could not escape death.

"Boy, what did you say? Are you questioning this one's Dao of fortune?"

Luohu snorted coldly. He had not expected Randeng to resist the temptation. Even the Dragon, Phoenix, and Qilin tribes had become engrossed in this path.

Feeling the killing intent in Luohu's gaze, Randeng's pupils contracted. Anxiety filled his heart. Hongjun monitored the Primordial World—why had he not yet discovered Luohu's remnant soul stirring up trouble?

Luohu's current bearing was immensely intimidating, but the Dao resonance around him seemed like duckweed without roots. Combined with the final voice transmission Jieyin had sent him—

This so-called Demon Ancestor Luohu before Randeng was merely a wisp of lingering thought left within Mount Sumeru's earth veins, temporarily manifesting through the Nine-Rank World-Ending Black Lotus.

As Luohu's mortal enemy, Hongjun must surely have already noticed Luohu's reappearance.

"This junior is all ears."

Randeng lowered his stance completely, maintaining the etiquette of a junior throughout.

"Junior, do not think I do not know what you are waiting for. Though this one has only a wisp of remnant soul left, I can still obscure the heavenly secrets for a short while."

With a beckoning gesture, Luohu sent a nine-rank black lotus spinning toward Randeng. It drilled into Randeng's mind.

Just as it was about to further erode Randeng's spiritual platform, it was blocked by the Precious Mirror of Merit formed from the merit he had accumulated within it.

Luohu gave a soft sound of surprise. "I never expected your merit to have accumulated to such a degree. If Hongjun saw this, he would surely praise you as fine material for cultivating merit. But for now, you should obediently become my puppet."

At this moment, however, Randeng could no longer hear what Luohu was saying. His Primordial Spirit huddled within the Golden Light of Merit, continuously wearing each other down against the demonic qi.

And he finally came to understand the cultivation method behind Luohu's fortune technique.

Through slaughter and conquest, one would unify the Primordial World, treat all races as tools for generating faith, and gather the fortune of all races to break through into the realm of the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal of the Origin.

But how could the fortune of all races be so easily borne? The Karmic Power, resentment, and Killing Intent produced during the unification would all be shouldered by a single person. It would be stranger if one did not descend into madness.

"This junior has something he does not understand. I ask Senior to enlighten me."

Gritting his teeth, Randeng questioned Luohu.

"Speak. Though I know you are stalling for time, if your question fails to satisfy this one, I will kill you at once."

Luohu did not care in the slightest. In fact, if Randeng could escape his erosion, he would instead admire him all the more.

"What I wish to ask is this: clearly, to cultivate into a Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal of the Origin, one need only comprehend a Great Dao and inscribe it upon the Heavenly Dao. Why is it that both you and Hongjun sought another path?"

This question had indeed troubled Randeng for a long time. According to the inherited memories, so many peak Innate Divine Saints could not possibly have failed to fully comprehend even a single Great Dao.

"Junior, I did not expect you to have noticed this problem as well."

Luohu gave Randeng an approving glance.

"From a Golden Immortal of the Origin to a Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal of the Origin lies a heavenly chasm. The most important part of it is Proving the Dao."

"Proving the Dao? What is Proving the Dao?"

With the aid of the Precious Mirror of Merit, Randeng was gradually suppressing the erosion of the World-Ending Black Lotus.

"My desire to destroy heaven and earth is Proving the Dao. Hongjun's desire to merge with the Heavenly Dao is also Proving the Dao. Proving the Dao means gaining the acknowledgment of the entire Primordial World. Remember—it is the Primordial World, not the Heavenly Dao."

Such a heaven-shaking secret sounded like nothing more than casual conversation from Luohu's lips.

"What? Then does that mean the innate memories we possess were all tampered with?"

The method for Proving the Dao and becoming a Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal of the Origin that Luohu described differed from the account in Randeng's inherited memories by one crucial point: the difference between the Primordial World and the Heavenly Dao.

"According to the inherited memories of Innate Divine Saints in your era, what you cultivate can only be a Heavenly Dao Sage. So, what do you think? Is my method of attaining the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal of the Origin through fortune not the true method of Proving the Dao?"

Luohu did not forget to tempt Randeng into cultivating the art of destiny.

Randeng knew he could not believe everything Luohu said, but the six Saints of later generations had indeed not broken through by relying solely on themselves; each of them bore the shadow of merit.

Even the process by which the two from the West became Saints had been influenced by Luohu's art of destiny.

"Think about it yourselves. Pangu only Proved the Dao after opening the Primordial World. If Proving the Dao were so simple, then would the three thousand Gods and Devils in the chaos have died for nothing?"

Luohu continued fanning the flames from the side, trying to break down Randeng's will so the World-Destroying Black Lotus could seize the chance to strike.

Just then, Randeng suddenly discovered that Luohu's restriction on him had vanished, and the World-Destroying Black Lotus had also stopped eroding his Spiritual Platform and Primordial Spirit.

"Enough, Luohu. How much longer are you going to spout nonsense?"

An angry roar seemed to descend from the chaos itself, bringing the pressure of a complete Saint upon this place. Countless cracks visibly spread across Luohu's body.

The next instant, a figure appeared within the underground space. He took the form of an old man, with white brows and hair, holding a Primal Chaos whisk. Ancient and majestic, he stood lofty and sacred.

"Hongjun, you finally came. What a pity—just a little more, and I would have completely eroded this boy's Spiritual Platform and Primordial Spirit."

Luohu grinned. Combined with the cracks covering his body, the smile carried a hint of madness.

"Still, I've already passed the art of destiny on to him. Are you going to kill him or not? If you don't, he might become the next Luohu."

In an instant, Luohu exploded. Yet every shockwave came to an abrupt halt before Hongjun, as though a universe lay between them.

"Boy, I'll be waiting for you in the Demon Realm. Consider that World-Destroying Black Lotus my gift upon our first meeting."

Luohu gave Randeng one last look and left behind those words.